Religion in a Time of Pandemic

5th Annual RGSA Graduate Conference
Religion Graduate Students Association (RGSA)
Department of Religion
University of Florida

Call for Papers
"Religion in a Time of Pandemic"
March 6, 2021

You are cordially invited to participate in the University of Florida’s Religion Graduate Students Association annual conference: “Religion in a Time of Pandemic.” Due to the current situation the conference will take place virtually. The theme of this conference is of timely importance as the current COVID-19 pandemic rapidly changes our social and economic systems and modifies religious practices. As a result, many governments have banned physical gatherings thereby impacting traditional methods of worship and forcing religious leaders to identify novel ways of addressing the needs of religious communities and their followers. As a result, the use of technology has become a valuable tool and medium of communication and practice.

For this conference, we seek papers that analyze and / or explore the relationship between religion and the cultural, economic, political, and social spheres that occur in a time of pandemic. Papers are welcome to engage cultural or religious / spiritual perspectives and / or to address either historical or contemporary intersections of religion and pandemic. Papers may address questions such as:
- How do religious institutions change during a time of pandemic?
- How has the pandemic been addressed and understood by different traditions?
- To what extent have steps implemented to combat pandemics affect rituals and worship?
- How do pandemics increase internal and external tensions between religions?
- How does a pandemic modify the relationship between religion and state?
- How are traditional religious sources innovatively revisited and reinterpreted to explain disease and pandemics?
Of particular interest are papers that develop cross-disciplinary connections, methods, and theoretical approaches to the study of religion. Contributors may engage with more specific themes in their manuscripts, namely:
- Conflict and conflict resolution
- Global, national, and diasporic uncertainties
- International religious efforts and initiatives
- Incorporation of information technology and new media into religious practices
- Religious interpretations of sanitary / medical responses
Interested graduate and undergraduate students should submit a 250 word abstract as a single Word document, along with their full name, email, and affiliated institution and department to ufreligiondept@gmail.com by December 20, 2020. If selected, authors will be informed of their acceptance by January 10, 2021.

Please address any questions or concerns to ufreligiondept@gmail.com